The first ingredient in this dog food is chicken. Although it is a quality item, raw chicken contains about 80% water. After cooking, most of that moisture is lost, reducing the meat content to just a fraction of its original weight.

After processing, this item would probably account for a smaller part of the total content of the finished product.

The second ingredient is dehydrated chicken. Dehydrated chicken is considered a meat concentrate and contains more than four times as much protein as fresh chicken.

Plus (unlike chicken meal) dehydrated chicken is never exposed to high temperatures during processing… so it preserves more of the meat’s natural goodness.

The third ingredient is potato. Potatoes can be considered a gluten-free source of digestible carbohydrates. Yet with the exception of perhaps their caloric content, potatoes are of only modest nutritional value to a dog.

The fourth ingredient is chicken fat. Chicken fat is obtained from rendering chicken, a process similar to making soup in which the fat itself is skimmed from the surface of the liquid.

Chicken fat is high in linoleic acid, an omega-6 fatty acid essential for life. Although it doesn’t sound very appetizing, chicken fat is actually a quality ingredient.

The fifth ingredient is dried egg product, a dehydrated form of shell-free eggs. Quality can vary significantly. Lower grade egg product can even come from commercial hatcheries — from eggs that have failed to hatch.

In any case, eggs are easy to digest and have an exceptionally high biological value.

The sixth ingredient is herring. Herring is a fatty marine fish naturally high in protein as well as omega 3 fatty acids, essential oils needed by every dog to sustain life. Although it is a quality item, raw fish contains about 80% water. After cooking, most of that moisture is lost, reducing the meat content to just a fraction of its original weight.

The seventh ingredient is dehydrated herring, another protein-rich ingredient.

The eighth ingredient is herring and salmon oil blend. Herring and salmon oils are naturally rich in the prized EPA and DHA type of omega-3 fatty acids. These two high quality fats boast the highest bio-availability to dogs and humans.

Depending on its level of freshness and purity, the herring and salmon oil blend should be considered a commendable addition.

From here, the list goes on to include a number of other items.

But to be realistic, ingredients located this far down the list (other than nutritional supplements) are not likely to affect the overall rating of this product.

With five notable exceptions…

First, although alfalfa meal is high in plant protein (about 18%) and fiber (25%), this hay-family item is more commonly associated with horse feeds.

Next, this recipe contains fructooligosaccharide and a source of mannanoligosaccharide (also known as MOS), nutritional supplements likely included here as prebiotics. Prebiotics function to support the growth of healthy bacteria in the pet’s intestinal tract.

In addition, this recipe contains selenium yeast. Unlike the more common inorganic form of selenium (sodium selenite), this natural yeast supplement is considered a safer anti-cancer alternative.

Next, brewers yeast can be a controversial item. Although it’s a by-product of the beer making process, this ingredient is rich in minerals and other healthy nutrients.

Fans believe yeast repels fleas and supports the immune system.

Critics argue yeast ingredients can be linked to allergies. This may be true, but (like all allergies) only if your particular dog is allergic to the yeast itself.

In addition, a vocal minority insists yeast can increase the risk of developing the life-threatening condition known as bloat. However, this is a claim we’ve not been able to scientifically verify.

In any case, unless your dog is specifically allergic to it, yeast can still be considered a nutritious additive.

What’s more noteworthy here is that brewers yeast contains about 48% protein, a factor that must be considered when judging the actual meat content of this dog food.

And lastly, this food also contains chelated minerals, minerals that have been chemically attached to protein. This makes them easier to absorb. Chelated minerals are usually found in better dog foods.

A Final Word

The descriptions and analyses expressed in this and every article on this website represent the views and opinions of the author.

The Dog Food Advisor does not test dog food products.

We rely entirely on the integrity of the information provided by each company. As such, the accuracy of every review is directly dependent upon the specific data a company chooses to share.

Although it's our goal to ensure all the information on this website is correct, we cannot guarantee its completeness or its accuracy; nor can we commit to ensuring all the material is kept up-to-date on a daily basis.

Each review is offered in good faith and has been designed to help you make a more informed decision when buying dog food.

However, due to the biological uniqueness of every animal, none of our ratings are intended to suggest feeding a particular product will result in a specific dietary response or health benefit for your pet.

Remember, no dog food can possibly be appropriate for every life stage, lifestyle or health condition. So, choose wisely. And when in doubt, consult a qualified veterinary professional for help.

In closing, we do not accept money, gifts or samples from pet food companies in exchange for special consideration in the preparation of our reviews or ratings.

However, we do receive a fee from Chewy.com for each purchase made as a direct result of a referral from our website. This fee is a fixed dollar amount and has nothing to do with the size of an order or the brand selected for purchase.

Have an opinion about this dog food? Or maybe the review itself? Please know we welcome your comments.

Either way is fine. You don’t need to add anything to Farmina, it is a complete kibble. I do add warm water to my dog’s kibble though, no matter the brand, because I think it helps with digesting all that dry protein. It helps keep my dog hydrated too. It also slows my fast eater down a little bit. You certainly don’t have to though, it’s just personal preference.

ChiChi

I’m absolutely loving the new grain free pumpkin and pea mixture. The original grain free formulas looked great but my dog never does that well on foods that are that high in protein, so I never bothered buying a bag to try. She often has terribly soft stool and digestive upset with high protein. We tried the Ancestral Grain foods in the past but she reacted to an ingredient in it and got horribly infected anal glands. Every time I rotated a bag of AC into her diet, anal gland problems again. Haven’t had that problem with the new formula (thinking it was one of the grains she had an intolerance to, idk), and the protein is moderate so it works great for her! I’m glad they have something that works for her now because Farmina was by far her favorite food.

dad

Farmina announced a new “pumpkin formula”. It would have been more accurate to call it a “pea formula”. Pumpkin is an insignificant 5% of the food whereas peas are 20%. tsk, tsk

tosetti18

Just switched to this brand from Champions Acana due to the new changes in quality, pricing and carelessness. Really impressed by Farmina.

Tikle

Hey guys I just had a doubt wid the way of feeding our puppy .. I have a 6 months old beagle and i wonder how amI supposed to feed him N&D .. as in should it be dry or soakedin water ????

Mudi Mom

I have been using the grain free lamb for several months now, prior to that I tried the chicken and lamb with grain not as good. But I love the results from the lamb grain free. Good food. I do supplement with cooked meat and raw veggies, kind of like a topper. My dog has had many issues with food. I am a raw feeder but she cannot tolerate raw. She does very well with this food. I have also used it for travel with my other raw fed dogs and they do great no problems at all.

Tito Grandi

I’ve been feeding the grain-free chicken formula to my 5 y.o. Weimaraner (quite a delicate breed) for over 2 years, alternating with the Lamb formula. He loves them and and he is very healthy. So sorry to hear that so so many people disappointed by these kibbles as I personally had a very good experience and I still am. Tito Grandi (Italy).

Amateria

A lot of people don’t seem to realise that pet food like our food has a chance of been contaminated with something or just been a bad batch, I get sick from our food all the time lol whether it’s an allergic response or something else I have no idea, but I’ve been sick almost all days of this past month… Extra hot tea is my saviour!
It’s beyond sad when people don’t realise this, nothing is perfect food wise ever.

Lisa

Looked into the k3, took the time to contact Farmina and then shared the response. The Farmina website has much info on the foods they sell, where it is sourced, all of the testing and much more. They are very open about the processes, and have contact info and gladly respond.

I did not post looking for an argument, just looked into k3 that you posted a pic about as it concerned me. Just went diectly to them. like I said previously.

Further down in the posts it appears you obtained a bag of not so good food and are not very happy about that. That explains to me your rather abrupted responses. Blaming them is interesting. Food including humans sometimes spoils because of the handling process not the manufacturer. Most places, even internet purchases will allow one to return or refund. Perhaps that would of been an option instead of blaming Farmina. The time spent complaing could of perhaps been used to contact the source or to obtain a refund. Same would apply to the k3 picture from FB.

dad

The vitamins listed on the bag are synthetic so the statement from ‘Josh’ is not accurate.

Lisa

This is the response i received after contacting them.
“Hi Lisa,
Thank you for reaching out to us regarding vitamin k3 in our products. The image that was posted on our USA Facebook page was taken from our Brazil Facebook page and shared without being fully vetted. Our Brazilian company uses a different formula and in this case they might include vitamin k3. The image was shared and contains incorrect information for the US market. Our products are manufactured in our Italian facility and does not contain any synthetic vitamins. All of the ingredients we use are 100% natural. I am so sorry for the misinformation and will make sure it is removed ASAP. If you have any questions about the sources of our ingredients please let me know. I apologize again.
Thank you,
Josh”

My 3 dogs and many felines have been on Farmina grain free since the beginning of 2016. The changes are amazing. They have always been fed the very high end foods, some from Canada, since they were babies. Farmina is an incredible, healthy food, unlike anything sold in the US, in my humble opinion.

Myself, i like to verify/research information:-) Hope this info is helpful. And i do not work for nor sell Farmina or any pet foods or products.

Lisa

This is the response i received after contacting them.
“Hi Lisa,
Thank you for reaching out to us regarding vitamin k3 in our products. The image that was posted on our USA Facebook page was taken from our Brazil Facebook page and shared without being fully vetted. Our Brazilian company uses a different formula and in this case they might include vitamin k3. The image was shared and contains incorrect information for the US market. Our products are manufactured in our Italian facility and does not contain any synthetic vitamins. All of the ingredients we use are 100% natural. I am so sorry for the misinformation and will make sure it is removed ASAP. If you have any questions about the sources of our ingredients please let me know. I apologize again.
Thank you,
Josh”

My 3 dogs and many felines have been on Farmina grain free since the beginning of 2016. The changes are amazing. They have always been fed the very high end foods, some from Canada, since they were babies. Farmina is an incredible, healthy food, unlike anything sold in the US, in my humble opinion.

Myself, i like to verify/research information:-) Hope this info is helpful. And i do not work for nor sell Farmina or any pet foods or products.

Lisa

Not sure why that is on the FB pic, k3 is medadione sodium bisulfite complex, synthetically made. It is also the only approved AAFCO approved vit k that can be added to pet food. Really disappointing!
It is not listed on Farmina’s website ingredients or on the cat and dog food bags in my possession. An error on pic perhaps? One would think after all the wonderful things in is food and how it is made they would not add k3 or need to. As i said, it is not listed anywhere on the ingriedients list or on their website.
Contacting them for verification.

dad

Synthetic K3? Really? This was taken off the Farmina USA Facebook page.

DogoCanario

We have been feeding our latest puppy the Farmina Natural & Delicious Chicken Grain-Free Large Breed Puppy Formula Dry Dog Food for about nine months after transitioning from another highly rated food (Orijen). We are quite happy with the results, the puppy loves the food and the kibble size is relatively large (works well as a training treat).

I typically order the food from Chewy.com.

Amateria

I don’t think anyone is an expert to be honest, just using common sense when it comes down to certain things and things I’ve generally read over the last 5 years.

dad

Its really a shame people like you think they are experts.

dad

It sucks and within days it smelled rancid. When I bought the bag I noticed there was six months left for expiration. What I didn’t realize the food was already a year old. I felt bad using it after I realized it was already a year old.

chiapink

Wow sounds like our experience!

chiapink

This is true, my dogs have inhalant allergies, but all three of them itched on this food, do not know why but I will go on and keep feeding them the Ziwi Peak, could also be like Amateria says, could be the yeast, do not know, probably an anomaly of some sort.

Amateria

Probably another chicken allergy, do dogs get itchy off of yeast like we do? Because that could also be it as it’s got a few yeast ingredients.

Really a shame when people don’t understand dog allergies and call food bad, I’ve seen comments like that everywhere and it’s really sad to stop feeding from that company when all you had to do was just change meat proteins in most cases.

InkedMarie

Just because your dogs itched on this does not make it a bad food; it makees it a bad food for your dogs. I’ve fed numerous varieties of Farmina & no itching here.

chiapink

Made my dogs, all of them, itch, such bad food, and not cheap either.

Donatella Polston

Hi! I have one of my english on the lamb and blueberries and he loves it. The other has allergies and seems to do well on natural balance fish and potato, but both
originally were on Natures Variety.

dad

This food is terrible. I needed to switch to something else. My dog can eat virtually anything but this was a disaster.

LabsRawesome

” I saw the company makes several lines of food that are like Purina or even lower quality.”
“Many have K3, wheat, corn, meat meal, by products, BHA/BHT”
“I don’t see the need to use this food given there are so many to choose from”
I agree. I feel exactly the same way about Purina.
So my question is, if you feel this way, why then are you on the Purina page posting about how great the food is?

Sara Huestis

I have a French Bulldog & I alternate between all of the proteins in this line. She has never snubbed any of them! She has looked so much better on this food. Has filled out nicely, glossy coat, brighter eyes, well formed bms. Unfortunately, it has not helped her gas. *haha*

Great advice! This brand was too rich (causing diarrhea) for my two dogs but my foster dog is doing fantastic on it. She is a blue doberman with skin and allergy issues and this brand has worked wonders for her.

Lili

For example , Fun dog is 1e, NDis 5e. What you think, why thay make a Fun dog. There are people , who don’t want to spent a lot of money for dog. Unfortunately.

Lili

I suppose it’s normal to have a cheap (low quality) food for customers who do not have money. For example, in my country, most people focus on the cheap food, because they have not much money.

Jamie K.

lol I’d like to see ANY food brand that didn’t have some low quality or dangerous brands to go with their good ones. If it’s good for your animals, I’d rather go with it over continuously searching for other good brands. Even NV/Instinct has dangerous food lines, but some are good.

Canine Caviar uses meals now instead of dehydrated meat. I don’t know when that started but the kibble reviews were updated in July and they contain meat meals.

Victoria Antonyuk

chicken meal is ground chicken with bone. Meat meal quality can vary greatly, a lot of companies use for example chicken carcass that’s been stripped of almost all meat so it contains very little nutrients aside from calcium/phosphorus (those foods tend to have a high ash content due to high bone content). Dehydrated meat is just as it sounds, dried meat with no bones or anything else.

Victoria Antonyuk

How much are you feeding, keep in mind that Farmina is a much higher calorie food and overfeeding will cause gas and loose stool, cut back by 1/4-1/3 cup and see if that helps. My 24 lb dachshund only eats 3/4 cup total per day of the grain free one.

Bryan Ledford

Could someone kindly explain the difference between the dehydrated chicken used in Farmina (or Canine Caviar) vs. the chicken meal used in most American foods…

el doctor

Hi Taylor F.

Farmina looks like a great kibble. The ingredients and nutrient profile look much better than any of the Pro Plan formulas. Each dog is an individual and feeding what appears to be a high quality kibble doesn’t guarantee your pups are going to do well on it. It could be any of the ingredients that are causing the loose stool. It could also be the transition. Since it affected both of your dogs equally, I am leaning a little towards the transition, though anything is possible, it could even be the pumpkin or the brand of probiotics you are giving.

From now on, no matter what food you try I would go through a very slow transition period. The gut can be so accustomed to a certain food’s nutrition profile that any change could cause distress. To pretty much eliminate the possibility of the issues being caused by the transition and not the food I would literally do a 10 week transition. 10% of the new food for the first week and increase the new food by 10% each week until you hit 100% of the new food. I don’t think I would add anything or change anything else except for the food during this period.

If the loose stool occurs and lasts for more than 2 weeks I would try a different food. It any diarrhea or vomiting happens I would stop immediately. There are plenty of high quality foods reviewed on this website. Farmina is one of them. I think it’s a great idea to find a higher quality kibble and I don’t think the higher protein or lack of grain is something that your pooches will not be able to handle in the long run. I think you just need to buy the 5 lb bags of each new food you try, and I’m pretty sure you will find a better food that agrees with your 2 corgi’s.

Good Luck!

Tammy

It can often take a few months for dogs to transition to new foods especially when they are much higher protein. Keep up the probiitics, they will help.

Hater & Molly’s Mom

Thank you so much for the links and info!

Crazy4dogs

Many companies make some pretty bad products in addition to excellent products.

“One of them was Champion Pet Food International, based in Morinville, Alta., according to the CFIA, which investigated how the cow became infected and where its remains went.

It did not end up in the human food chain, officials said.

Champion used the rendered material in a dry dog food product it manufacturers for a U.S. distributor, Pet Pantry International, of Carson City, Nev. Champion also used the material in four of its own dog kibble products sold mainly in western Canada under the brand names Yukon Gold 30/20 Mushers Mix, Champs Choice Deluxe, Masterfeeds Sportsman and Brown Bag Dog Food.

Very few of Champion’s premium brands, which are sold in Canada under the name Acana, would even contain rendered beef as an ingredient, said Peter Muhlenfeld, the company’s spokesman. Since the BSE scare in Alberta, Champion has moved to eliminate rendered beef from all of its products, including the lower-priced product sold through grocery stores, he said”

Hater & Molly’s Mom

I had no idea that Champion made grocery store brands. I tried to look it up but couldn’t find anything. Can you post a link with that info? Thanks!

Pitlove

Champion Pet Foods, who makes Orijen and Acana, also make grocery stores brands that were involved in a couple recalls years ago. Doesn’t mean Orijen and Acana aren’t any good.

InkedMarie

If you’re in the states, those are not the Farmina foods we get here.

ChiChi

Wow, you’re right. I searched “Fun Dog dog food” and found it, along with many other subpar foods made by Farmina. I’m not sure what to think of this.

It’s so funny how on their N&D line webpage they go on about how dogs are carnivores and thrive on high meat foods, but then they’re making rice and corn based foods. Quite a few have more rice and/or corn than meat.

This is disappointing as I REALLY loved this food and it was one of the few brands I felt comfortable feeding. Now I’m not so sure :

Taylor F.

I’ve been feeding the grain-free chicken formula to my two corgis (1 and 9 year(s) old) for almost a month now after transitioning from Purina Pro Plan, but they are still having soft/loose stools and terrible gas. I’ve been giving them probiotics and pumpkin as well, but I have yet to see a completely solid BM from either of them. I really want to like this food because I’ve heard so many good things about it! Will they eventually adjust? Or could the low-grain formula be a better option (maybe this formula has too much protein for them)? They are not super active – especially the senior.

Crazy4dogs

See if the pet stores near you have free samples and try a few out. It’s the best and most cost effective way to try new food. 🙂

Zena

Hey thanks for ur advice I ended up getting farmina for her and she sniffs it but won’t eat it she eats it once she realizes she is hungry and has no other opinion

Crazy4dogs

Research some of the brands on this site, pick a few in the 4☆-5☆ rating and try them out. Many pet stores have samples to try to see what she likes & if it works. 🙂

Alex Woodman

Sorry for the late delay. Upon further investigation I saw the company makes several lines of foods that are like Purina or even lower quality. I saw one brand called “Fun Dog”.

Many have Vitamin K3, wheat, corn, meat meal and on the Brazil website I saw Vitamin K3, by-products and BHA/BHT. I don’t see the need to use this food given there are so many to choose from.

Zena

My Boston terrier is a year old and she is on royal canin. I gave that to her because when I got her as a pup that’s what she was on. But now she won’t eat I don’t no what to give her but I want it to be healthy.

Judy Barnes

Thank you, Julie! OMG, if I did that my Isabella would weigh 50 pounds and she’s a miniature poodle. She loves to eat! All the best to you and your furry kids,
Judy

Julie E

Judy, I free feed my little ones now, but before, I was giving them 1/4 cup twice daily and they usually didn’t finish it. Hope this helps.

Judy Barnes

Hi, julie. I feed Farmina grain free chicken to my two poodles, also, age 7 and 8, 10 lbs and 12 lbs. I am unsure how much to feed them. They eat twice a day. I wrote to the company but got no response. Can you help me with that? Many thanks!
Judy

elle

Thanks, Julian.

Julian Friedman

I have a french/english cross that has been on the GF wild herring for 2 months now. He’s doing great. I tried the ancestral grain wild cod and he got gassy.

elle

why not?

Pitlove

Hi Alex- May I ask why you will not use this product anymore? All I hear is very good things about this food.

Alex Woodman

My opinion has changed, I wont use this product anymore.

elle

Does anyone feed this product to their Bulldogs (english)? Just ordered the Lamb and Blueberries. One of bullsdogs is very picky – hoping he likes it.

While it is true that some dogs eat grapes with no reaction at all, it is also true that some dogs die from eating grapes. They don’t know what it is in the grapes that is the problem, but they DO KNOW that it isn’t an allergic reaction. And most dogs don’t die from eating chocolate, not because they aren’t allergic to it, but because they didn’t eat enough of it. Poison is dose dependent and has nothing to do with allergies, though eliminating toxins from the body is affected by certain health conditions like kidney and liver disease. A dog with already compromised kidneys and /or liver is much more likely to die from ingesting something toxic, but that doesn’t mean that the healthy dog’s body was not damaged from ingesting the same thing. The next time, it will be the one dying.

Dori

Joseph, I don’t mean to be harsh but I must. Your dog’s vet does not know what he is talking about. Toxicity has nothing to do with whether one is healthy or not or has allergies or not. Some foods are toxic to animals PERIOD!!! If this is the type of information he is giving you and his clients then he is giving out some serious misinformation that can be very detrimental to his patients. Please don’t pass that information out to any of your friends that have animals. The idea that you should feed small bits of known toxins to your animal to see if he/she can tolerate it borders on lunacy. It’s so wrong that I needed to comment. Why on earth would anyone even try it? As Shawna mentioned in her post, go to the poisonpetline.com site and read for yourself. Also do some research on google. Again, please don’t pass along the information that your misguided vet has given you. It does not simply cause a little diarrhea. It causes major long term health issues and death!

GSDsForever

Toxicity from foods like grapes, chocolate, onions, macadamia nuts, etc. to dogs has nothing to do with allergies or health conditions of specific dogs. They are toxic to ALL dogs.

And it is absolutely false that such identified foods have “just about the same amount of risk as any food actually.”

Your vet is mistaken or you have misunderstood her.

I’m sorry, but it is really irresponsible to advise people, as you have just done, to experiment with feeding their dogs substances of known, well established toxicity. Please stop spreading false information here. You are actively endangering other people’s dogs here.

GSDsForever

Shawna, I had to tell an ethnic/foreign church congregating for lunch after services, where no adults spoke much English & I did not speak Korean, that it was really not a good idea to be feeding lots of chocolate candies to the teeny tiny dogs that a couple of them had in purses. I really had trouble communicating this to them & being able to tell from them smiling and nodding politely back to me that they understood well enough to take it seriously. I was so alarmed! They were feeding a ton of it, like it was just completely normal and no one had ever heard of toxicity for dogs.

GSDsForever

Thanks, Shawna for posting this.

Funny, I was typing away while you were! Just got a chance to read your post after I hit “post.”

GSDsForever

I don’t see grapes among the ingredients for either the lamb grain-free or grain inclusive.

If you are referring to the blackcurrant berries listed for both these formulas, perhaps this will help: this is a European product and in Europe blackcurrants are not a type of grape there, as they are in the US when blackcurrants are listed on a label. This can be confusing, but the US and Europe are referring to two different fruits when they say “blackcurrants.”

If the ingredients and label/website listings have changed since then and it once contained actual grapes, I would think it wise to be wary.

Grapes ARE toxic to dogs, not dependent upon allergies or health conditions. As with most toxicity, the concentration of the toxin (I.e. dark baking chocolate/pure cocoa vs. a snickers bar) and dose dependent, along with proportionality to the size of the dog. (Toxicity to a Yorkie or Bichon Frise is a much greater risk than with a German Shepherd or a Lab.)

This can be reassuring when a minor accident has occurred– as when my German Shepherd Service Dog right after first coming to me from professional training and settling into his new career watched me put away groceries, that he had just helped me unload from the car and carry inside like a pro, then opened the top cupboard cabinets, retrieved a small chocolate covered women’s vitamin bar (Luna Bar), and ate it wrapper and all.

But really, as an intentional act, there is just no good argument for CHOOSING to feed a dog these known toxic foods such as chocolate, grapes, macadamia nuts, walnuts, onions.

When a dog food company knowingly puts a food with toxicity to dogs, although the amount is likely very small near the bottom of the ingredient list to pose much actual risk, I would be more concerned about the judgment and knowledge of the people formulating the food. When Champion (Orijen & Acana) put leeks, a type of onion, in their original formulas it made me really doubt that they knew what they were doing and had enough safety checks in place before products hit the shelves for consumers. I just found it odd. It didn’t exactly inspire confidence for me in the company — even though the amount was likely too small to truly be harmful, particularly to a large dog.

I think one of the best sources of info on pet toxins is the Pet Poison Helpline. Here’s data about some of their staff “Veterinary specialists. We’re the only poison control with board-certified veterinary internal medicine (DACVIM), emergency critical care (DACVECC) specialists, and veterinary toxicologists (DABVT, DABT)” http://www.petpoisonhelpline.com/about/ I would hope that “veterinary toxicologists” would be a very reliable source of info on things toxic to pets.

Here’s what the Pet Poison Helpline says about chocolate (as you stated, it is dose and type dependent but size of dog, age of dog etc could play a role as well) “Of all candy, chocolate is most poisonous to dogs. Many dogs are inherently attracted to the smell and taste of chocolate, making it a significant threat. In general, the darker and more bitter the chocolate, the more poisonous it is. The chemicals in chocolate that are dangerous – methylxanthines – are similar to caffeine and more heavily concentrated in the darker varieties. In fact, just 2-3 ounces of Baker’s chocolate can make a 50-pound dog very sick.” http://www.petpoisonhelpline.com/2011/10/pet-owners-beware-chocolate-and-dogs-dont-mix/ The chemical can not be efficiently metabolized by dogs so it stays in their bodies longer causing a toxic affect.

Grapes and raisins cause kidney disease. “Grapes, raisins, and even currants (some currants are actually small, black grapes) are toxic to your dog! In fact, there have been anecdotal reports of cats and ferrets being affected by these also. Ingestion of even a small amount of grapes, raisins, or currants can result in severe, acute kidney failure….. The toxicity is not necessarily dose-dependent, and symptoms can occur with even small ingestions.” They don’t know what about the grapes is the problem and therefore can’t tell us which grapes might be safe and which could be dangerous. IMO, this is a food to avoid just in case you have a grape that is problematic. http://www.petpoisonhelpline.com/poison/grapes/

DogFoodie

My friend’s dog just died as a result of her having eaten some raw onions, which are known to be toxic. I wouldn’t be willing to take the risk and feed a little as a test. Grapes wouldn’t necessarily be harmful, but the seeds could be.

Joseph

This is for anyone who reads the comments this late, so sorry for bringing a dead thread alive. According to my vet, foods are not necessarily toxic to dogs (even chocolate in small doses), but some dogs have food allergies or health conditions. If you are concerned about this, give them a little bit, and if they do fine, you should be good to go. However, there is a minimal risk (just the same amount of risk with any food actually) that your dog will get sick from grapes, let alone get deathly ill from it. Again, this is according to my vet who has seen pets eat many things labeled “toxic” and the worst that happened was having to go to the bathroom a lot… not because of the food, but because of the amount eaten.

Scott

I have been meaning to post about this food for a while. I have two dogs from the same litter that couldn’t tolerate Orijen but loves this food and are doing great. I highly recommend Farmina.